Danny Valencia only as good as his last at-bat

BRADENTON, FLA. - After Twins third baseman Danny Valencia had RBI doubles in his first two at-bats on Wednesday, manager Ron Gardenhire gave him the option of coming out of the game or getting one more at-bat.

"Yeah, yeah I feel really good. I got this guy," Valencia said to Gardenhire.

Valencia dug in against Pittsburgh Pirates righthander Mike Crotta in the fifth.

"It was a quick four pitches," Valencia said. "The only pitch I swung at nearly hit me in the stomach."

Valencia took strike three, ending the inning. The Twins went on to win 4-2, but Gardenhire won't let Valencia, who is not short on confidence, forget his last at-bat.

"Now he's in there [the clubhouse] eating chicken, thinking about his last at-bat," Gardenhire said.

Valencia was called up last season and finished with a .311 average, seven homers and 40 RBI in 85 games. The Twins might finally have their long-term answer at third --which means Gardenhire might get plenty of chances to ride Valencia in the coming years.

Valencia drove a ball over left fielder Jose Tabata in the first to drive in Ben Revere. He then blasted one in the gap in the third, scoring Trevor Plouffe.

And Valencia dived to his right to grab a grounder by budding star Andrew McCutchen in the bottom of the third and threw him out.
How was that play?

"Great," Gardenhire said. "[Valencia] still struck out in his last at-bat."



(startribune.com)